WHEN the FA Cup comes around, it is difficult not to start dreaming of success.

That is no different at Worcester City as we embark on our campaign at Godalming Town on Saturday in the second qualifying round.

For anybody who has played or managed in the FA Cup, you get a special buzz the week before you come into the competition.

It’s totally different from a league game and you cannot help but dream about what’s potentially there for you.

In recent years, Crawley and Havant and Waterlooville faced Manchester United and Liverpool respectively and you cannot help but wonder if that could be us this time.

You can’t hide from the financial rewards, and they are crucial for clubs like ours, but the real drive is getting yourself in the spotlight and having a little run.

It’s every non-league player’s dream to try and get to the first round proper, which is three wins away, because there are some big clubs who come in at that stage.

Few are fortunate enough to reach the third round when the Premier League clubs enter but only a small percentage get to play in those games.

There are also a lot of large, ex-Football League clubs now who join in the fourth qualifying round such as Luton, Grimsby and York.

So, if we win a couple of matches, there is the chance of getting an attractive tie.

I have plenty of memories from my days playing in the cup and remember scoring against Belper Town in a 3-1 fourth qualifying round replay victory at home in 2001.

The highlights were on Sky Sports the following morning and I almost choked on my toast seeing myself scoring on television! But, to give yourself a chance of playing in those games, you have to approach matches like Saturday’s professionally.

From a players’ view, it’s a game of football and we will prepare the same as any other fixture and give Godalming the respect they deserve.

The fact there’s prize money at stake doesn’t matter to the players — that’s for me and the directors to consider.

For the players, it’s a chance to put themselves in the spotlight for a few weeks.

Lee Smith, our new striker from Nuneaton, goes straight into the squad and he brings us extra strength in depth.

I am an admirer of Lee, he’s a proven goalscorer and has a good work-rate. His scoring record is impressive and I was close to signing him at the start of last season.

He has also played alongside Mike Symons before and if Lee does as well as him we will be overjoyed.

The big plus now is if players are not performing there are two or three banging the door down for their opportunity and that is healthy.

I wouldn’t swap that for anything.